spin found the photos of the girl were of someone else who was very much alive and unfamiliar with manti te'o around whom suspicion now swirled. i think it's highly unlikely that he was duped in the fashion he says he was. >> how many of you here tonight with with your imaginary girlfriends ♪er dame tried to explain. athletic director jack said the triumph over tragedy narrative began to unravel when teo was called on december 6 by someone who said the girl not only had not died but had actually never existed. but here's the thing. teo did not tell notre dame for 20 more days. and he continued to speak publicly of a girlfriend who died. >> i don't like cancer at all. i lost my grandparents and girlfriend to cancer >> reporter: he says now he was confused. notre dame was chagrined. >> this was a very elaborate, very sophisticated hoax perpetrated for reasonse can't fully understand but had a certain cruelty at its core. >> reporter: on wednesday, teo released a statement that the whole episode was incredibly embarrassing. friday night he told espn some samoan man had confessed to pranki